At the British Craft Trade Fair in April 2018 I was approached by the craft gallery manager, Tracey Burgoyne, of the New Brewery Arts Centre, to see if I wanted my work on display there. I travelled there yesterday, 220/10/2018, and Tracey selected 14 items of my work for their Christmas exhibition and sale. This exhibition starts 26/10/2018 and ends 31/12/2018.

]]>https://ian-fraser.co.uk/2018/08/29/exhibiting-at-just-makers-wood-show-rhs-harlow-carr-gardens-11-09-2018-to-14-10-2018/feed/21272More work for Dansel Gallery, Dorsethttps://ian-fraser.co.uk/2018/08/11/more-work-for-dansel-gallery-dorset/
https://ian-fraser.co.uk/2018/08/11/more-work-for-dansel-gallery-dorset/#respondSat, 11 Aug 2018 18:37:06 +0000http://ian-fraser.co.uk/?p=1240Dansel Gallery in Dorset specialises in retailing high quality wooden objects and furniture. I have exhibited there since 2016, and periodically send them, on request, items to top up items of mine that have sold, such as these fruitboats.

Supplied for Dansel Gallery, Dorset, the fruit boat in the foreground is made of European oak. The one in the background is made of black walnut.

I felt honoured to be asked to contribute to this exhibition at Gallery Ten. I have work in a number of Scottish galleries now. There are some well established and very talented woodworking artists in the Wood Show. The other half of the exhibition is paintings and prints of trees, the two exhibitions occupying the same space, so the conversation between the two should be interesting. The pictures show what I am sending to Gallery Ten.

Billy had this to say about the legacy of that good friend of General Augusto Pinochet, Margaret Thatcher: “The death of Margaret Thatcher is nothing more than a salient reminder of how Britain got into the mess that we are in today. Of why ordinary working people are no longer able to earn enough from one job to support a family; of why there is a shortage of decent affordable housing… of why cynicism and greed became the hallmarks of our society. Raising a glass to the death of an infirm old lady changes none of this. The only real antidote to cynicism is activism. Don’t celebrate – organise!”

]]>I have read these three books about neoliberalism this year, the year of Brexit and Trump, and much else that is not worth celebrating as 2016 draws to a close. The first, Small Is Beautiful, a gift from my friend Barry Horton, written in the early 1970s, is laced with warnings of what will happen if neoliberal ideology takes hold in politics and economics. Naomi Klein’s book, which was very disturbing, written 35 years later, documents what has resulted from neoliberalism, confirming Schumacher’s predictions. George Monbiot’s book, a collection of his essays over a few years, has very similar messages to Klein’s.

I can better understand now the anger behind a song called “If I had a rocket launcher”, by Bruce Cockburn, someone not particularly known for angry songs.

Cockburn wrote it at a time when there was a lot of bad stuff happening in south and central America, instigated by the CIA, US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (the subject of “The Trial of Henry Kissinger”, by Christopher Hitchens, brilliant book), interference with the internal matters of Latin American countries, and the imposition of an economic and political ideology, neoliberalism, that emerged from the Chicago School of Economics, which was embraced deeply in the USA, Reaganomics, and in the UK, Thatcherism. Two shattering political events occurred this year in both countries, the two countries where the neoliberal project bit the deepest. A reaction to something going badly wrong. South and Central American are emerging and recovering from the shock torture that was foisted on them. The International Monetary Fund has been kicked out, and there are no US military bases any longer in South America. They are doing things their way now. The UK is at a dangerous tipping point right now. Most will not realise this, or are too busy, and worried about their immediate futures to care very much about anything, except their immediate needs. Monbiot is writing a sequel, How Do We Get Out Of This Mess?. It is important to look forward, with hope.

Speaking for myself, I am in no mood for celebrating this New Year’s Eve. What works for me, and draws me to hope, is doing something positive, productive, getting politically active. Kicking at the darkness until it bleeds daylight. It has been in so many ways a horrendous year, I need not go into detail and there may well be more terrorist atrocities, in addition to ongoing conflicts and the growing refugee crisis. We have now a global web of disaster capitalism. With climate change and more extreme weather events resulting from global warming, which is the result of fossil fuel extraction and emissions, inaction, deregulation, and privatisation, disaster capitalism becomes self perpetuating. At the top of the mess now a political administration will be inaugurated next month, Trump, a robber baron, is creating an administration of robber barons (who are all climate change deniers) to enable their base to make as much money as possible, for as long as possible, they do not care, their economics and politics do not put people and their environment first. An economic system that requires constant growth, while thwarting and undermining almost all serious attempts at environmental regulation, generates a steady stream of disasters all on its own, whether military, environmental or financial. And a steady stream of unnecessary suffering on massive scales. Climate change is analogous to adding an accelerant to a fire. The current refugee crisis will, in a few decades, pale into insignificance compared to the mass movements of people there will be if dangerous levels of climate change take place. Our common addiction to dirty, non-renewable energy resources keeps other kinds of emergencies coming: natural disasters exacerbated by climate change, and wars waged for control of resources, like oil, which in turn create terrorist blowback. Wahabi inspired jihad funded by Saudi Arabian wealth, wealth accumulated by oil extraction and sale.

God’s Kingdom is built by making bridges and opening hearts and minds, not by closing doors and building walls. Radical changes are needed, politics and economics as if people and the environments they live in actually matter. There are turbulent times ahead, but if we heed the words “seek first the Kingdom of God”, and all that implies (and it is worth exploring what in practical terms Kingdom builders need to do), and act accordingly then change can happen. Political will is a renewable resource. Hoping and praying for 2017 to be a year when turning points towards a kinder future are reached. Brexit will have been worth it if it leads to a socialist government here in the UK.

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The 2016 Christian Aid Christmas Appeal is bringing attention to the desperate situations faced by displaced people and refugees. In a question and answer style sermon at the 9:30 service, on 11/12/2016, with Vicar Alan Garrow, St Peter’s, I spoke about this appeal. The congregation’s response was magnificent, both in feedback and donations, £373.50, plus Gift Aid, and signatures on the Christmas card to the Prime Minister about the plight of refugees, and the work Christian Aid is doing. The text of what Alan and I discussed in front of the congregation is below.

This Christmas, 65 million people simply cannot be at home. Forced out by the darkness of violence and fear, they are searching for safety and refuge.

Each candle represents 1 million people who are displaced from their homes. In 2015 the UN estimated that there are 65 million people displaced around the world. This is the highest number of displaced people since World War II, and the numbers are going up, not down. Wars, conflicts, and climate change are driving more people to take desperate measures.

There are 65 million people displaced around the world. Where are they trying to find refuge?

We are familiar with the news about refugees in Calais and Greece and the crisis in Syria and Iraq, crossing the Mediterranean in their thousands. We all remember the image of little Alan Kurdi, his lifeless body face down on a beach at Bodrum, Turkey. It is worth remembering that the majority of the world’s displaced people are either displaced within their own country or are seeking sanctuary in a neighbouring country. Turkey currently holds 2 million Syrian refugees, Lebanon hosts over a million, Ethiopia and Kenya are hosting well over half a million refugees from Somalia, South Sudan and Eritrea.

What is Christian Aid doing to help refugees in Europe & the Middle East?

Working with refugees is nothing new for Christian Aid. Christian Aid was founded by the churches of the UK & Ireland as a response to the refugee crisis in Europe after the WWII. Our partners in Greece and Serbia have been working with refugees providing practical help, and counselling, informal education for refugee children, and working to break down barriers between refugee and host communities. Many of these refugee communities are now stranded, unable to continue onwards and determined not to return to places of war and conflict.

You said the majority of displaced people are not in Europe. What is Christian Aid doing in other parts of the world?

Christian Aid is active in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Congolese Civil Wars, which began in 1996, have devastated the country. The wars ultimately involved nine African nations, multiple groups of UN Peacekeepers and twenty armed groups, and resulted in the deaths of 5.4 million people.

Christian Aid is active in Myanmar, for over 30 yearssupporting refugees from Myanmar’s civil conflict taking refuge in camps on the Thailand-Myanmar border.

Now, as the political situation shifts and the possibility of returning home has become more realistic, Christian Aid is helping refugees to prepare for their return.

I see there are envelopes for donations; can you give us any examples of how any money we give will be spent?

£20 could help a refugee family forced to flee conflict in Myanmar by giving them enough food to last an entire month

£50 could pay for seeds and tools that a family forced out of their home can grow crops to feed themselves.

£100 could pay for medical care for people traumatised by conflict so they can re-build their lives. This Christmas, your gift could light the way to a brighter future.

What else can we do?

The refugee stories we hear and tell are important. They help us shape our thoughts, form our opinions and set the agenda. Christian Aid wants to tell a story that upholds those escaping injustice and war, and that celebrates those who offer a welcome.

While many communities and churches are united in welcoming those seeking refuge, the response of the UK Government has not matched the scale of the crisis.

The stories told about refugees in the UK media too often promote discrimination, which in turn discourage the UK Government from taking steps that put human dignity first.

But every one of us has a voice in this story, and in times of political uncertainty at home and around the world our message of shared humanity is more important than ever. God’s Kingdom is built by making bridges and opening hearts and minds, not by closing doors and building walls.

Through sharing stories of hospitality, and the positive contributions that refugees make in our communities, we demonstrate our commitment to a pluralistic United Kingdom that has a long and proud tradition of helping refugees.

So I would like to invite you to begin your own story today – join Christian Aid in changing the story around refugees. Everyone can do something about this: we can give to support Christian Aid’s work with refugees, write to our MP and MEP, and to the Department for International Development, and support Harrogate Borough Council and our local churches in their efforts to welcome refugees here.

This Christmas Christian Aid is asking churches to send a Christmas Card to the Prime Minister urging her to welcome refugees: not only through Government policy and action, but also through the language she chooses to use. I have prepared one for our congregation, and you are most welcome to sign it, if you feel able to support its messages. It reads:

Dear Theresa

Will you help light the way for those fleeing violence, fear and desperation?

This Christmas, 65 million people simply cannot be at home. They have been forced out by the darkness of violence and fear, by poverty and climate change.

As our Prime Minister, the stories you tell about refugees carry great power and the words you use help to set the tone for our conversations.

During this season of peace and goodwill, please reflect on your own rhetoric about refugees. And into the New Year, please ensure your words reflect our proud tradition as a nation that welcomes those in need and your policies offer hope to those looking for a safe place to call home.

I have been asked to undertake a repair to the church door I made for All Saints’, Kirkby Overblow, near Harrogate. Nothing has gone wrong with my workmanship, I hasten to add. An incident. Someone, a visitor, got locked into the church overnight, and had no means of alerting anyone that they were locked into the church. After eight hours, and burrowing with a screwdriver at the area of the door casing where the bolt engages they managed to free the door. It is a little bit messy, though, fortunately the door itself is totally unaffected, just the casing. A neat repair can be done, and am aiming to do this 10/12/2016.

Repair undertaken, I will return in early summer to rub down the door and clean it with sandpaper, then give it a coat of tung oil to keep the oak weatherproof.